Volume I Part 51 (1/2)
”Oh! he will come, my dear; I am very sure that he will come.”
”Why are you so sure of it, pray? what makes you think so?”
”Why--because he looked so happy when you invited him to come; his eyes expressed such pleasure!”
”Very well! if he comes, we will receive him.--Have you put down my library?”
”Yes, it's all down. He has a very courteous manner.”
”My _etagere_.”
”And very _comme il faut_!”
”The small dining-table; we may need it.”
”He expresses himself very well.”
”And this desk, this blotting-pad.”
”How old should you say he was?”
”My blotting-pad?”
”Why, no; Monsieur Edmond Didier.”
Madame Dalmont's expression was almost stern as she said:
”My dear girl, don't you propose to think of anything but Monsieur Edmond?”
”I! Why do you ask me that?”
”Because ever since we came back from the notary's, I suppose you are not conscious of it, but you have talked of nothing but him; you are thinking of him all the time.”
Agathe blushed to the whites of her eyes and stammered:
”Mon Dieu! if I have talked about that young man, it is only because he was so obliging to--you, that it seemed to me quite natural to be grateful to him. But if it displeases you, that is enough; I won't mention him again.”
”Let us not exaggerate things, my dear love; the thing that might displease me would be to see you thinking too much of a person whom we hardly know; who showed himself most willing to be of service to us, it is true; but who is none the less a stranger to us.”
”A stranger! why he told us all about his family and his means, and what he did.”
”Yes, that is true; and I noticed that the first use he made of the sixty thousand francs left him by an uncle, was to leave his place.”
”Because he does business on the Bourse now.”
”It would have been much wiser of him to keep the place he had.--But after all, my dear girl, this doesn't concern us. In my judgment, we have had quite enough to say about this gentleman, and I ask you now whether you will or will not help me to prepare an inventory of the furniture I propose to keep?”
”Am I not writing what you tell me to? I am waiting for you to dictate to me. I won't say another word.”
Mademoiselle Agathe had a.s.sumed a little pout which made Honorine smile.